Risk of coronavirus spreading on surfaces is low, CDC says

Risk of coronavirus spreading on surfaces is low, CDC says

 

Since the pandemic began, cleaning has become a top priority for many people. But those who obsessively disinfect surfaces may be giving themselves a false sense of security.   "The CDC determined that the risk of surface transmission is low, and secondary to the primary routes of virus transmission through direct contact droplets and aerosols," Vincent Hill, chief of the Waterborne Disease Prevention Branch, said on a CDC partner briefing on Monday.   Hill said the risk of transmission from touching a surface, while small, is elevated indoors. Outdoors, the sun and other factors can destroy viruses, Hill said.   Research also suggested that surface transmission was more likely in the first 24 hours after a person is infected, and that households where one person had Covid-19 had lower transmission rates when the household cleaned and disinfected surfaces.   "In most situations, cleaning surfaces using soap or detergent, and not disinfecting, is enough to reduce the already low risk of virus transmission through surfaces," Hill said. "Disinfecting surfaces is typically not necessary, unless a sick person or someone positive for Covid-19 has been in the home within the last 24 hours."   Hill also warned that cleaning and disinfecting alone may give some people a false sense of security if other prevention measures, such as wearing masks, physical distancing and hand hygiene, aren’t practiced.